Children of War: Ripping the Curtain
Children of War: Ripping the Curtain A Mocking Challenge It was tense. Not that Pyrrha Nikos was about to fight somebody of reputable strength and relative unknown background apart from Atlas sponsorship, but just her whole situation. She was overwhelmed by the ramifications of what she agreed to, what she was shown, and whom she talked to. From the time she was given a radical exchange of words and visual display of ridiculous power by Rhea, the dismissed lunatic of Harkin's payroll whom seemed to know more than she should; then she was told everything about the legends of the Four Maidens being confirmed by the now revealed oldest man she's ever met, Ozymandius the Great and Powerful. It was clear that she should commit to this duty, something that Jaune -in his innocence- didn't seem to fathom and encouraged her to do something that she may regret on a personal level. But she couldn't just walk away. She was destined for this, right? If she didn't, more people could get hurt or worse, like Yang and Seth's friend. There was so much going on right now that it was hard for her to focus. The booming voice brought her back to reality, Professor Port overshadowing his colleague as they introduced the pair in the ring. It was a simple, straightforward circle this time around. No projections, just white smooth tiles from one spot to the next. Penny, wearing her usual modest and quaint attire, just beamed without thought or worry as she waved enthusiastically back at Pyrrha. This made the red-haired Amazon grip her left arm with discomfort, looking away in both shame and indecisiveness. It was something that the rest of the crew, having arrived back just in time with their haphazard acquaintences, caught wind of. Ruby thought something was off ever since that information was revealed about the confirmed suspicion that the whole event of Yang attacking Sahara was rigged. With these sudden new 'friends' she was even more cautious, but she couldn't show it, not with so many eyes and ears keeping appraised of her actions. She didn't know who to trust in a crowd this big, just looking on at Penny with hope that things could be stopped if they find out whose behind this charade. Blake on the other hand kept looking over at Anthony and Elisha, not saying a word but communicating with her eyes and changing expression that she could feel unease from their 'friends' that helped them get back so quickly. They weren't seated very far away, and they all had a vague sense of familiarity. She couldn't place it right off, but she knew she had seen one of them before, if not all of them. "Man, I hope Pyrrha's okay," Jaune voiced his worries as he slumped forward, nervously wracking his hands as his eyes fixed on the screen showing in detail Pyrrha's worried posture and face. "She's been real worried ever since earlier with her meeting with the Professor. And that thing with Yang? I'm not sure if its a good idea for her to continue competing." "She has to, there really is no other option but to keep moving forward," Ren replied, Nora remaining oddly silent and contemplative, as he crossed his own arms and looked at the screen with composure the rest lacked. "This is a deciding factor. Will we have a repeat, or can we finally avert disaster?" Certainly, the boys of ARES didn't think much of the latter option. All of them were seated with varying expressions of apprehension and disgruntlement on their faces. Anthony, in particular, was subtly scanning the audience for any possible signs of activity. He knew that Winter and Jericho were just as equally vigilant on their end, but he also knew that they'd want all of their bases covered. So even as he sat casually with his arms folded across his chest, all of his senses were on the alert. Naturally he, as well as the equally wary Elisha, caught Blake's signs. After sparing her a glance, the two boys looked at each other and then to the group sitting not too far away. They were more nonchalant, looking like the rest of the audience - people ready to see a good show despite what had happened in the last match. However, what they looked like didn't stop a subtle red flag from being waved in Anthony and Elisha's heads, one that was probably going off in Blake's, as well. They'd have to keep an eye out. "Jerry here." The familiar voice of his mercenary friend drawled in his earpiece. "We're in position on this end, and I'm assuming you're in position on your end. Keep eyes up. This may be the only chance we've got." Anthony only grunted in affirmation, but that was the only signal Jericho needed. The communication line was cut. "U-Uh guys!" "What?" Weiss asked, taken aback by their leader's sudden fidgeting. Exchanging a tearful glance at the platinum blonde, the blue-eyed heiress dully stared back. Sighing with a lungfilled groan, she whipped her head back, her hair slapping Ruby in the face unintentionally as she waved dismissively to her. "Go. I don't want you missing this match cause of your lack of control-" "OH THANK YOU!" Ruby squeezed Weiss around the neck, causing her to squelch with bulging eyes. Darting off in a pulse of rose petals, Blake looked over at the momentary distraction before staring back at the arena. It was only another minute or so before the festivities renewed. She was trying to look at anyone casting glances near Pyrrha or Penny, keeping an eye out for her mutual acquaintences and the Team Leader's friends. Jaune would be broken out of his daze at seeing Ruby just run off when Professor Port and Oobleck's voices shatter the tense silence. Ren stared impassively while Nora bounced impatiently in place. Their team center was about to fight before the whole world, and with what happened with Yang, it was a miracle the whole event wasn't postponed. Biting his lower lip, he clenched his hands into tight fists and hoped she'd get through this unusual funk she was going through. "AND LET THE MATCH, BEGIN!!!" Port's voice bellowed with a blaring siren going off at the same time that Penny got her act together and Pyrrha robotically used Semblance to wield her sword and shield. ---- Just as the match would begin, Ruby had gotten terribly lost. Her dynamic motion was useful in a pinch but it was terrible for depth perception, making everything appear like a blur with the exception of particular objects she was fixated on. Twirling around and finding a very much distant ladies room, she had relieved herself with a rushed sigh just as she heard the distant blare of the Professor's voice ring out to her ears. Stumbling out of the room, she realized she was in a completely different corridor than normal. Where and how did she get here? Just as she was aiming to turn to look for help, she saw something that made her blood run cold and her eyes dilate. Her throat cracked and her voice squeaked out in almost any other case adorably, but was in a complete impotent whisper of palpable realization. "S-Sahara?" Indeed, it was the girl thought to have been indisposed by Yang a match ago. But it wasn't simply her presence that drew attention. Her shattered right knee was completely restored. Her mouth showed no signs of scarring, and if she opened her mouth, the teeth that were missing were also there. It was almost as if she hadn't even fought Yang in the first place. Unlike Ruby, she was carrying herself in a rather casual fashion. She stood with her fists folded behind her back, a small smile gracing her lips. "Heyo, kid." She said, raising her brow a little. "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost. What your sis did hurt like hell, but it sure didn't kill me, don't worry." Cogs turned into Ruby's head. Yang's testimony at the fore of her mind that she looked like she was going to attack and she replied in reflex. Instead, she was shown before everyone as someone who struck an innocent. When it was reported she was taken off campus, she expected her to be out of commission for months at worst, and weeks before she could walk again. But now, she was acting like nothing happened; the victim callously walking off something that brought her sister to the point of agony and guilt ridden tears. The emotion she felt for her sibling stirred something inside of Ruby that was all but a foreign emotion until she became infatuated with Seth and began to learn new emotions outside of her simple bubble of innocence. She began to feel betrayal; a betrayal that was festering into hate. "How could you?!" Ruby cried out, her countenance shifting from alarm to outright vitriol. Her calm eyes traded to a gleaming pair of silver discs that brimmed with outrage, she cried out with raised fists, clenched in exchange for the sibling who couldn't defend herself when the audience and authorities came for her. "You tricked her into attacking you! Yang's not the one to blame but you, Sahara! Tell me why!" Sahara's casual attitude faltered a little when she saw those eyes. A bead of sweat formed on her temple. However, at the same time, she couldn't help but feel a bit intrigued. When they had met, Sahara never would've assumed the younger girl would express such anger and hate. She couldn't help but wonder if this was a first time or one of the few times it would happen. She would have to report the "silver eyes" thing back to the others; Fehin had mentioned seeing something similar. "Me? Trick?" She asked rhetorically, chuckling and shaking her head. "Sorry, cherub. I may be a cheater, but there are just some tricks I just can't pull off - at least, not by myself. Whatever Yang saw was something induced by someone else I work alongside. I only served as the guinea pig, the best choice needed to make an act look real." Her smile grew a bit wider, and she pulled a hand from behind her to appropriately gesture. "Granted, I was hollering too much to focus on what was happening. But at the very least, I could see that look on her face once those Atlas soldiers arrived. I could hear how dumbfounded she was, how distraught she was. Oh, how I wish I had the ability to laugh right then and there." She took a step forward, her eyes twinkling with malevolent charm. "And that's only the beginning act. Once this one's done and dusted, this glorified shelter you call a kingdom's gonna have a taste of just what it's been trying to isolate itself from. I can only wonder. Just how many of you folk have what it takes to survive the apocalypse?" Ruby felt her Aura swell and it was on the verge of escaping her colorful red and black dress. The only thing that prevented her was the sudden sound of Professor Port's booming voice talking about Penny pushing back the titan of a student like Pyrrha; one she knew was linked with using a Semblance that could harm her friend. But the only person who knew that was herself, and she kept that secret from everybody. Something that made her fly into a panic, dashing off the ground and whipping her cape around to jettison herself into the tall ceiling of the corridor in a flurry of rose petals. It wasn't fast enough. A boost of her momentum, and Sahara was in front of her. A fist, enhanced once again with her Semblance, ran into Ruby's jaw. The force would be enough to send her careening back down to the ground like a miniature meteor. She herself would land in a crouch and her palms slapping against the ground as she reunited with it. "Ah ah ah~" She sang smoothly, straightening herself back up. "You don't get to leave, just like that. I'm not sure what you plan on accomplishing when you don't even have a weapon on you, but..." She spread her arms out in challenge. "You ain't passing until you've paid your toll, and I'm a very greedy collector." Ruby had to be thankful she hadn't been fighting since the First Round of the day. If she hadn't had a genuine good rest she wouldn't have had the Aura to tank the blow that was thrown her way. Coming in like a streak of color before her eyes, she was rematerialized the moment the fist made contact with the cloak-ridden wind of rose petals. Slamming into the ground with a mighty crash, her head swam, her body ached and she tasted blood in her mouth. Even as her hearing rang out from the blow to her skull she heard the dull mocking made towards her by someone she thought was a friend of Seth's. The way she stopped her, patrnonized her and scorned her made that subdued anger swell back up again. An unknown force flourished up around her, causing the cloak to whip around and about as she turned her bruised face -ebbing blood that she refused to wipe away- as her silver eyes glowed a brighter hue than before. "You stupid bitch!" Her voice snapped in an uncharacteristic spat of venom, her body beginning to dissolve into rose petals as she glared ahead at Sahara. "I don't have any money!" In this instance, she chose to act a bit more craftily. Outspeeding Sahara with so little distance to build momentum was out of the question, so she had to use her own Semblance's dexterity to outmaneuver her. Scattering in what looked like a wall of rose petals towards the young woman, the crimson cloak danced between the flow, bouncing from each wall, whipping around till she'd swing around in a materializing scythe-hooking heel kick aimed at Sahara's left temple. Through the potential collision or evasion, Ruby would dissolve the next instant to throttle another snap kick, following through with a series of rapid darting kicks utilizing propulsion and prompt uses of her Semblance to avoid being struck outright like she was before. Sahara only had time to give Ruby a bemused look before she was forced to grace herself. The rose petals and the moving cloak was a surreal sight - so surreal that it almost knocked her off her balance when the first kick came. Her breath briefly halted, and she leaned her head and body just in time to miss the heel that would've crashed into her head. Her hands and arms moved in front of her, blocking and slapping away those boots. Her feet dug in, only stepping back if a particularly forceful blow uprooted her. With the duel with Mercury still fresh in her mind, she had the ability to grin at Ruby even as she defended herself. "Really, kid? Legs?" She taunted. "Black tried this before and he was kissing a wall by the end of it!" Her hands shifted. One caught Ruby's offending leg by the ankle, her own foot sweeping her opponent's remaining one. In the brief moment before Ruby could hit the floor, Sahara threw her body forward. A momentum-enhanced fist was hurled, promising to smash the girl's head against the ground once more. Ruby had learned from her fight with Feihn that she couldn't utilize pure speed to beat a stronger opponent. Just like with him, Sahara had faster reflexes and the reaction timing to capitalize it. From the fight she witnessed against Mercury, she could instantly change directions and time her defensive maneuvers to pure offensive ones. But unlike someone like herself, she had to remain solidly stuck to the ground to maintain this split second change in motion. So when she was thrown to the ground, Ruby used her tangible connection with Sahara as a means of counterattacking. The instant she was thrown off balance, her body became a rippling cloak as the countless petals surrounding her were ripped through by the offending limb racing towards her at breakneck speed. She'd feel the heat, the tear of armor-woven silk and skin, as the Semblance enhanced punch slid by her waist -hidden by her cloaked form- as she barreled straight into her moving form. Using her enemy's forward momentum against her combined with her own bolting motion, Team RWBY's leader slammed bodily into her Sahara with all the force she could muster so that she could disbar her obstacle and slam her into the far crossroad hall's wall. Like a crimson ribbon slamming a brunette haired visage into the opposite barrier, this would all happen within an instant beneath a passing second due to the nature of the speed demons' duel. Sahara didn't even have to comprehend it. She only had a split-second to comprehend the shift before the wind was knocked out of her and she was sent flying backwards. Shock gripped her as much as the cloaked bundle against her body. In that second, she could only muster up one thought. "What the hell?" Then, the collision with the wall. Pain shot through her back, exploding through her body. Blood was ejected from her mouth, and comprehension of her world was briefly ejected from her being. However, her feet managed to find a standing position. One of her hands found their way to the front of Ruby's cloak, fingers clenching around the material. A smile, gritted and toothy, found its way to her mouth. Then, she swung her head forward and crashed her forehead into Ruby's. It wasn't enhanced by momentum. But that didn't mean it wouldn't hurt that much. Her free hand balled into a fist and thrust into Ruby's throat. Ruby saw the expression on Sahara's face as she came to a stop. Her silver eyes dimmed with anger ever so slightly at seeing the familiarity of how, despite bloodied around the mouth and teeth, the heaviness of her breath and the position of being pressed against the cracked wall; she looked a lot like how Seth reacted when up against the odds. She was about to mouth off why she acted like this- -but then received a vicious headbutt against her skull. "Ah!" She cried out, reeling back as her forehead throbbed, protected by her Aura but still felt her skull throb like a gong. Even though she had a firm grip as her body backed up a step, it gave enough space for a pair of knuckles to crash into her neck. Her eyes bulged, her mouth gaping as she croaked out from the blow to her neck and her sight reeling from the blow. But the distant rambunctious shout of Professor Port and Oobleck about the ongoing fight stirred her will to fight. Turning her pained face into one of anger at Sahara once again with a craned twist of her neck, she bent her knees and then propelled herself with Sahara in hand towards a corner of the adjacent hall to the left. Spinning around she'd slam her bodily into the space where the ceiling met the wall, grinding her body as she'd rapidly move with her in tow with her momentum building with every moment she moved forward. With the two fold plan of doing damage while also finding the nearest escape to warn Penny and Pyrrha, she did all she could to muster in a forward motion that allowed her to fight and keep running. The punch to the neck hadn't stunned her as long as Sahara thought it would. Had she been too gentle? Or was Aura just that tough? The blonde's eyes widened when she was suddenly taken upwards, an unwilling passenger on Ruby's drive. Her hands found places upon Ruby's shoulder and head, but couldn't do much else before she was once again slammed into the wall. She couldn't help the pained shout that escaped her, her shock only increasing as she felt herself being ground against the hard material. Even with her Aura - and only the fates knew how high or low it was, at this point) - she could feel her scraped skin burning through her clothes. She had two choices: think quickly, or become a literal smear that would've made jelly spread blush. She switched her hands again, one of them grabbing Ruby's throat. The other swung up to slap against the corner she was being run across. A shift of momentum would send them plummeting back down to the ground, and during that flight, Sahara would use both hands to grasp Ruby's throat. In that moment, her smile showed off all of her teeth. In that moment, there was nothing but the rush of adrenaline in her eyes. In that moment, the most violent of thoughts conquered her mind. Choke her out. Bust her skull. Break her neck--'' And then, a single flash of a familiar face paused those thoughts. In that moment, her face fell. Her hands shifted from Ruby's neck to her shoulders before they could hit the ground. She straddled the younger girl, keeping her pinned down. For the moment, she had stopped her fight in order for a brief pause, for a moment to retake the breath stolen from her. "Give it up, ''Ruby." She hissed, her fingers digging into Ruby's shoulders. "You really think you're gonna make a difference trying to save that tin can from getting dismantled? Even if she doesn't get ripped up by Nikos, she's gonna get torn up by the Grimm that're gonna raid the hell out of the place. No matter what you do here, it's not gonna be worth it. Someone's gonna die. Someone always dies. That's how it always ends up." It had come out a lot more angry than she wanted it to be. She couldn't help but wonder if she said too much. But she was too caught up in the fight to care. One of her hands pulled away, paused for less than a second - long enough to be noticed - and balled itself into a fist. "Just do me a favor..." Sahara raised her fist over her head, readying herself to knock Ruby out with one solid blow to the temple. "...and just stop trying!!" She swung down. Ruby thought she could see a glint of light, there beyond the tunnel she had incidentally turned with Sahara in hand. She lost focus of the fact she was grinding a living being whose Aura she was chipping away at through sheer kinetic trauma. Her thoughts once again dwelled on Pyrrha and Penny, worried that either of them could kill the other accidentally thanks to Cinder and her lackeys' conniving. It drove Yang to maim Sahara through accident; what could happen to either of them who boasted even stronger traits that could destroy the other?! A meaty crack caused Ruby to stop that track of thought to halt. Her mouth opened, a squeak of air released and her vision blurred with a brief flash of white entering her eyes. Blood sprayed from what the Aura couldn't protect but her body emanated a blossoming flare of red from the skull outward, revealing a fizzling spray of static tendrils. Thrown off course, Ruby's hands released Sahara as she was thrown off course and face first into the ground at a terrifying velocity with no Aura remaining to brace her from such a deadly impact. The feeling of a sudden cold embrace made her dimming eyes widen with fright as the hall's light formed a shadow that spread outward from her own, engulfing her in what looked like a giant hand. Catching her, she vibrated it with her inertia rebounding but held her firm and lowered her to the ground gently. She felt a sense of relief as she caught sight of a somewhat familiar face in the raven-haired mystic, Rachel. Sahara would be caught by the collar, and held in a stranglehold, by a gaunt grip that was familiar but never in this position. Desmond's blue-green eyes glared hotly, full of venomous accusation that mirrored the contempt laced in his dangerously quiet voice; one emphasized by the wayward stares given by a wall adjacent Tesla and Rachel's own cold glare. "What the Hell is this, Sar?!" Desmond snarled, his voice echoing with aforementioned bitterness, the white hot wrath bubbling just beneath the surface of bare restraint. "I thought you had to go to an emergency center in Vale, before they shipped you back home due to the fact your leg got fucked. And now, here you are, busting the head of one of our comrades-in-arms in a hallway with not a scratch on you!" "We've attempted to contact you, Sahara, but got nothing but silence and the EM staff never recorded your departure," Tesla chimed in, arms crossed over his chest as he put in his two scents, the orange-maned Faunus sneering at her. "Do you think we'd be dumb enough to not notice something was up? When I was hearing your voice coming from the halls, I knew you were conning us." "Apparently, her being part of Vacuo's Hunter Academy isn't all as it was supposed to be," Rachel determined, something they all agreed to without as much of a change in their demeanor. "What I don't understand is why? What do you have to gain by sabotaging all of this, lying to everyone? Are you being extorted, blackmailed? Or is this part of some sick joke only you seem to get?" And just like that, Sahara's train of thought changed from angry to shocked. "Oh, no." She had been careless. Perhaps they were more intuitive than she had assumed. But either way, she had put herself into a position where she was outnumbered and outgunned. Granted, she still had power even throughout her bout with Ruby. But taking on four potentially armed hunters-in-training by herself unarmed? It was too much of a risk, especially at this state. To top it off, she had nowhere to run if they chased her. The plan would be potentially ruined right as it got off the ground. Fortunately for her, it only took a moment of thought. Even as she grasped in discomfort at the arm around her neck, she had it set. Her lips moved, her words were chosen and her voice made itself known with purpose. "You're asking the wrong questions, Rae." She said lowly. "It's not about what I can gain. It's about what I gotta lose. You see, when my bleeding carcass was dragged out of that train, after that failed attempt of a robbery by my old man--" She paused, clicking her tongue. "Well, the closest thing I can title as "my old man"..." She let those words sink in; the lure had to be registered before it could attract. "...He told me things. Opened my eyes. Made me realize just how fucked everything is. Human civilization's been whittled down to four safe zones. Everything outside of that's food for an endless horde just waiting to tear down everything that's been built. It's only a matter of time until everything starts falling." Just like before with Ruby - at least in her last words to the young girl - she spoke with honesty. "With what's been happening here in Vale... it just shows how easily a kingdom that took centuries to build can be whittled down in just a matter of days." Desmond looked livid. This wasn't like the fearless and headstrong Leader that was chosen by Vacuo's Headmaster. What was held in his grip was a fragile, fear-driven opportunist who may as well been no better than the infamous Roman Torchwick. A liar, and a thief, making away with whatever she wanted because of some counterfeit idea of how the world functioned because of some fatalistic trauma that transpired in her life. It was sickening to have trusted and watched after someone like this...! "How could I have not known, that my leader," Desmond snarled, pulling back an arm before punching Sahara in the face so she'd fall to the corridor's floor. "WAS SO WEAK?!" "Des-!" "I-It doesn't matter," Ruby weakly coughed out, holding her wounded spot on her head as she stumbled out of Rachel's shadow-grasp, almost falling over if not for Tesla's quick-footed movement. As he caught her, she rasped out with a shivering hand towards the visible vista of the arena-filled crowd and the participants represented as blurred dots to her vision. "W-Warn P-Penny and P-Pyrrha! T-They're going to...g-g-get hurt...l-like...Yang and...S-Sahara!" Rachel's eyes widened as she looked to Desmond and Tesla with affirmation of what they were all thinking. The enemy had manipulated the previous match and, if what Ruby's clash with Sahara was true, had used one of their own to make it work. What was going to set-off the star student of Beacon against Atlas' contestant?! As tough of a girl Sahara was, she had to admit that Desmond could hit hard when he wanted to. She crashed into the ground with a yelp, clutching at the cheek Desmond hit. She lay on her side, paying her former figurative second-in-command a disgruntled glare. Had she been in a position to, she would've gladly shot back at him. But now wasn't the time to get focused on philosophical debates and truths. Right now, she needed to get out of there. But... She had no idea how close it was to show time. But if she wasn't hearing anything - any screams of horror from the audience or anything like that - then she could safely assume the sabotage hadn't happened yet. She had to stall a little more. She coughed, then chuckled. "If I were you, I wouldn't interfere." She warned, almost casual in her deliverance of her lines. "You're trying to save people, right? Well, not jumping in may get people hurt. But if you step in now before everything can fall into place, well..." She raised her brows, hiding a small grin. "You are really not gonna like what happens next. If you wanna save as many lives as possible, just sit back and wait. You're gonna be dooming a lot more people otherwise." ---- An Undone Plan Gone Awry Pyrrha's mind was reeling. Everything that she had believed, everything she was standing for and the way she was raised by her family had been challenged by this new reality that was brought to the fore. Her whole life was destined to become a Huntress, her family was proud of her accepting that calling and her training up to that moment. Beyond being isolated due to prestige, she was confident that she was doing this for something greater than her own happiness. Then, she found it; a light at the end of the tunnel. Jaunedice Arc looked at her like an ordinary girl, flirted with her and found companionship with her without knowing a single thing about it. She slowly mentored him and they formed a friendship that developed romance that radiated strongly in her now aching heart. Lie Ren was a gentle soul with a troubled past, but was never far away to lend aid and a comforting shoulder; Nora conversely showered them all in enthusiasm and energy to keep them from becoming lethargic. The Team was the best thing to ever happen to her since training to become a Huntress. Seth McBrown was someone else who kept her head from touching the clouds. Despite going after her prestige and use her for his own gains, she couldn't help but find him a unique and curious soul. Pessimism borne out of his hopeless struggle against the odds, betrayal and abandoment that catered to a negative self-serving life made her heart reach out to empathize with him. Even her association with the rest of Team ARES has left a positive impact, alongside Team RWBY. And now, she may never experience life the same way again. To take in this procedure that was admittedly dangerous, the experiment could kill her or hollow her out from the inside out. Even if she could become the Fall Maiden, would she be able to use its power? Or would it destroy her? "GAK!" Pyrrha cried out, finding herself barreled through by a windmill shuriken path of wire-swords. Her Aura sporadically radiated from the less armored spot of her abdomen, flashing in red and her body tumbling head over heels. Struggling to regain her breath, her eyes looked up, trying to focus on a humming bow-adorned ginger from Atlas. "Come on, Pyrrha!" Penny urged, a sincerity that shined from her emerald eyes as she spun the blades around in a meticulous dance over her head till they rested just behind her in a semi-circle arch. "You can keep going, right?" "Y-Yes!" She growled out, pushing herself up to her feet. Looking down at her hands, she saw her weapons warped, contorting in and out, as her Semblance was reacting to her cascading emotions. Gritting her teeth, she desperately folded the metal back into their proper framework before charging back at Penny. "MY-MY! PYRRHA NIKOS SEEMS TO BE HAVING QUITE THE STRUGGLE AGAINST THIS MYSTERY GIRL FROM ATLAS, ISN'T SHE?" "YES-YES! IT APPEARS THAT THIS MAVERICK FROM THE COLD NORTH HAS A REAL DARK HORSE OF UNPRECEDENTED SKILL DESPITE HER OPTIMISTIC DEMEANOR! WILL BEACON'S SHINING STAR SHOWCASE HER STRENGTH OR WILL SHE BE OVERWHELMED?!" "Something's not right," Jaune emulated out his worries, his face showing an expression of fear on his mouth as it opened and his eyes dilated with fright. "Pyrrha isn't fighting nearly as well as she should. Why is she acting like this?" "I wish Ruby would be back soon!" Weiss cried out under her breath, looking over her shoulder with a glaring frown. "What's taking her so long? Did she seriously get lost on the way to the restroom?" "It is a big stadium," Blake intoned, though she had her own worries as she kept her eyes firmly on the battle not far away from them. "Maybe she got distracted with something." "This isn't the place or the time to be distracted," Ren muttered lowly, turning to look at Anthony and Jaune with a knowing glance. "I believe something else may have stalled our fearless leader in red's return here." "Should we go look for her?" Nora asked, just as Pyrrha got in a few hits on Penny, right before the wire blades propelled her back almost to the edge of the arena. Her attention was now fixated upon the fight, no longer concerned at the moment as their ideal Huntress-in-training was struggling to keep herself in the match. "Come on, Pyrrha! Don't give up now!" The dialogue was rattling the already tense team ARES - particularly, Seth. "Okay, fuck that." Seth muttered, immediately rising up from his chair. "I'm looking for her." "If she managed to get lost, you're not going to find her that easily." Elisha said immediately, rising up and placing a hand on Seth's shoulder. "And what's supposed to be the alternative?" Seth hissed, shoving the hand away and turning his glare to Elisha. As agitated as he was, he was smart enough to keep his voice low. "Sit here and wait while she's getting wasted?" "She's more than capable of handling herself in a fight." Elisha insisted, barely taking note of Rohan as he stood up. "If worse comes to worst, she can just retreat. She has the speed--" "--and they might have someone to counter that speed." Seth interrupted. "Don't you get it already, El? These guys were able to think ahead. That's why we got tied up in that train in the first place. They knew how we were gonna move. You think Pup's exempt from that?" He grit his teeth and balled his fists. "If you wanna stay up here and pretend it's all good, then go ahead. But you're not stopping me." "I can go, as well." Rohan said suddenly, causing the trio to look in his direction. "I have the capability of handling severe threats. Elisha, you should stay here with Anthony." "Don't I have a say in this?" Anthony said sarcastically, raising his hands up at Seth's glare. "Look, I ain't wasting time fighting you on this. If you wanna see what's up, go right ahead. I ain't stopping you." Not to mention, I have to keep an eye out on things here... As the discussion unfolded, another one was taking place with the so-called "new" group. Lionel rolled his eyes. "Dust almighty..." He muttered, keeping his voice low. "The hell is she thinking? She should've waited." "Doesn't matter." Harkin muttered back, keeping the accent in his voice. He pulled out his Scroll and tapped away at it, quickly sending a message. "It keeps weight off our back. Be glad for the extra breathing space." ---- "The Invincible Girl is being pressured. You're clear to set the table." From an undisclosed location, Cinder analyzed the message before smirking. She could feel it now, the Grimm being agitated by the first wave of negativity. A second sabotage would drive the final nail in the coffin, and the creatures that had been waiting so long would besiege the city. It would be a perfect distraction for her. "Emerald." She said, her voice smooth and anticipating as she called her personal subordinate. Off to the side, Mercury stood with his arms folded across his chest and a smirk on his face. "It's time. Give Nikos the boost she needs to win... and then some." ---- The voice of Emerald's leader voice rang in her ear, giving the order. Her hands gripped the rail she was leaning against in anticipation. She had been doing a good job so far at following Cinder's lead and carrying out her will. This would be yet another task that the woman could see as a grand accomplishment. Eager to be the one to drive this nail in, she wasted no time. She focused on Pyrrha, her eyes narrowed into a hawk-eye glare. Then, she released the influence of her Semblance. Pyrrha would see its effects as Penny raised her arms for another strike. She would see those floating blades multiply from five, to ten, to twenty and so on. It took only seconds for an army of those blades to materialize around Penny. It took less than that for all of those blades to be launched at Pyrrha's position. Every fiber in Pyrrha's stressed mind saw what at first she thought was a mirage, but made very real sounding metallic clangs and grinding sounds. Her sweating face paled, eyes dilated and her heart began to thump in fright. Her blood pumped wildly through her veins and her Aura ignited out of instinct into a blazing red; one that would release a distortion wave of polarity towards the mere handful of wire-attached blades. She let out a war-bellied cry, just in time to hear another noise. ---- Ruby couldn't help but hear Professor Port's voice and her body shook off support from Rachel. Despite the indecision of Sahara's words, the red-trimmed raven haired girl could only think of saving her friend. The one person whose never called her friend, and was a sweet if not odd girl regardless of not being a human. She wished that, like her, she wouldn't be left alone without anyone to call a person who loved and protected them. "H-Hold on, you shouldn't be moving-!" Inhaling as much air as she could, she managed to get to stumble out to the entrance into the stadium next to lines and lines of stands, staring straight at the arena from near the ground level. Pyrrha was launching a visible wave of polarity with a war cry, causing the swords and the presumable wires to thrust back to cut the attacker to ribbons. With silver eyes nearly palpable of a glow, she let out a horrified scream as her hand reached out with a single word. "PENNY!!!!!!!!" ---- It all happened in spans of instants. Nora had her hands reach up to her mouth, eyes watching Pyrrha look like she was unleashing a brutal attack akin to what Yang had to Sahara. Jaune lurched back, Ren stared on with morbid disbelief while Weiss gasped and Blake's eyes widened to a degree of perplexity and horror; beyond their knowledge, they'd know that Yang, despite being huddled on her bed in the fetal position, felt a shiver run down her spine. The body of Penny was thrown backwards, the wires of the blades beginning to twine, and the image of the legion of arms vanished in favor of the four to five swords. Pyrrha's eyes took in every painful detail of her Semblance cinching each chord around every appendage, even around the waist and neck, beckoning to wrap her in nooses of eviscerating proportions. Then, on the verge of dismemberment, a violet figure landed adeptly between the pair and thrust a hand towards Pyrrha and a riding crop towards Penny. Before everyone's eyes, the ramping of terror in the audience turned into confusion and relief as Penny's frame was held in mid-strangled posture, leaning backwards with the pull of her weaponry. Slowly with care they untwined and let Penny stand back upright, the swords landing onto the ground much to the robotic girl's visible confusion and...relief. "Oh my," She quietly squeaked, looking up to Glynda's form and then to Pyrrha. "I...almost ceased existing, didn't I?" "M-Missus Goodwitch-" "It's alright, Miss Nikos," Glynda replied, her stony stoic mask relenting a moment to show a wry smile on the corner of her lips as she adjusted her spectacles; the mirroring image showing a distant Emerald suddenly flanked by Winter and Jericho, each managing to grab her by the wrists and pin her down, backed up by Atlesian Knights and Atlas commandos now sweeping the area of the stadium that was causing confusion and panic. "We've caught the culprit." "What the Blazes is going on?!" Professor Port cried out away from the mic. "It appears that this entire ordeal was rigged, in some way," Oobleck countered, looking over at Port through the corner of his eyes from his spectacles. "As the Headmaster warned us not but some time earlier." "Precisely," Ozpin's voice echoes through the stadium speakers, his person walking up to be by Emerald while clacking his cane against the ground, his eyes bearing hard upon Emerald. "Thanks to some foresight that was extracted gratefully into my possession, I knew that I was looking for somebody with a Semblance; a Semblance like yours, to endow a person a hallucination of your own making. Isn't that right, Emerald Sustrai?" Meanwhile, Weiss and Blake had sighed with mutual relief, finding their own way of seeing justice had finally been met. Jaune fell back into his seat, feeling his body go lax, allowing Ren to pat him on the shoulder comfortingly. And Nora was all but shell shocked, trying to process what had transpired that was nearly yet another horrible incident like what happened before. This left Ruby, awash with joy, causing her to fall to her knees and feel herself begin to cry with overwhelming emotions. She thanked to whoever heard her, even if it didn't help, she just was happy that the worst didn't transpire. Rachel rushed to her side to keep her safe, while Tesla exchanged a look with Desmond, who in turn walked over to Sahara to grab her by the collar again and pin her to the wall; an arm placed just under her neck and jaw with a heated glare aimed at her. "So, Yang Xiao Long wasn't enough? You had to target another girl to maim, if not kill, in the process, didn't you?!" He yelled gutturally, his hand reaching for the sword behind his back and unlatching the magnetic latches holding it to his cloaked back. Despite freeing it, Tesla managed to grab his weapon-wielding arm, his face glaring at her but not letting him strike her. Lowering his weapon, he tightened his hold on her against the wall, sneering as he spoke, "You're going to answer for your crimes and help redeem her name, in compliance to your surrender. IF you don't, we'll be forced to bring you in by force!" The entire time, Sahara had fallen into shock. Even as she was pressed against the wall with an arm around her neck, she could only stare in disbelief as Penny was saved just in the nick of time. It hadn't mattered if Ruby was too late; someone else had interfered. Someone else was imbued with knowledge that should've been disclosed to all but her inner circle. How had they gotten their hands on it? How had they known? This shock was shared by Emerald, who was suddenly confined against the rail she had leaned on. Instinctively, she struggled. But the grip of the soldiers was too strong, and she wasn't in a good position to fight back. "L-let me go!" She demanded. "You're in no position to be giving us orders, Sustrai." Jericho said vehemently, keeping a firm grip on her arm. "You're gonna be taken into custody and given a long questioning. Don't worry. The rest of your team are soon to follow." "...holy shit." Seth breathed, staring at the entire scene in shock. It couldn't be denied now; what he had seen in the match against Sahara wasn't Yang's doing. Pyrrha herself was far from a cold-blooded murderer. That release of energy had to be due to the influence of another person - the person who was being restrained by Atlesian forces. Anthony smirked, a sense of triumph and relief washing over him. "See? We didn't need to do anything. I told you things were under control." Even Rohan had been broken out of his stoic demeanor when he saw the wires wrapped around Penny. He had been on the verge of leaping down himself before Glynda intervened. When he saw things had been settled, he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "...is that it?" Elisha breathed, a hand pressed against his chest. "Is that... really it? Are we in the clear? Please tell me we are in the clear. Please tell me the enemy's plot has been thwarted and we can all rest, safe and sound." "...well..." Harkin muttered, scowling. "So much for that." "Looks like we'll have to resort to plan B." Lionel smirked, standing up and brushing himself off. Fehin and Rhea stood up wit him, their gazes locked onto where Emerald had been restrained. "About time. I was getting sick of this stuck-up elite act. A guy's gotta breathe his own air, y'know?" "Agreed." Harkin answered, unhooking something from his waist. He pulled out his Scroll, typing in a few more. But this time, it wasn't a message. "I guess that this means I'll have to take over the big speech. Get ready to move when the first one goes off." As his team stood near the railing, he turned and steadily walked up the bleacher stairs to the stop. If he was going to do this, he had to be dramatic. He had to choose his words. He had to make all of the attention circle on him, letting the others work in the shadows. With this moment, he would make all of Vale fear him. He would become public enemy number one. It would be one step closer to bringing everyone under his heel. He stopped at the top, turned around to face the world at large. He raised the Scroll to face-level and began to speak. His voice would take over the speakers, resonating throughout a shell-shocked audience. "Well, wasn't that a ''close one?"'' All of team ARES's eyes shrank when they heard that casually smooth and sinister voice. Anthony, in particular, felt a shiver go down his spine. His eyes searched around, frantically trying to search for the source. "The hell...?" Jericho muttered, raising a disbelieving eyebrow. "Who--?" Sahara closed her eyes and sighed, knowing what was coming. "...I warned you, kid." "You were just a millimeter close from yet another brutal takedown of an innocent student. That's exactly the kind of students Beacon Academy raises! Bloodthirsty, violence-prone students who are more focused on destroying rather than protecting. It's gotten so bad - these misguided pupils, the failing law enforcement - that Atlas is trying to sneak martial law on Vale itself! I have to admit, it didn't take much from me or the Grimm for kingdoms to be at each other's throats!" Anthony grit his teeth, his lips curling in an almost animalistic snarl. "That lying son of a bitch..." "It must be scary, being on the verge of war." Harkin continued. "It must be scary, knowing that you're going to get a front-row seat of two supposed allies tear each other apart. But fret not!" The hand without the Scroll was holding something else - a detonator. He pressed the button, continuing to talk. "If you get up and make yourselves scarce now, I can guarantee that--!" BOOM! A section of the bleachers was engulfed in a violent explosion. The spectators were caught in the burst, their screams being swallowed by the flames as much as their bodies were. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Three more blasts of the same power would go off within the audience - one of which was deathly close to the Atlesian group and Ozpin. The shockwave was enough to nearly knock Jericho off of his feet, and he was forced to release Emerald. With one arm free now, she was able to rip away from the other guard's grasp and dart off into a panicking crowd. "God damn it!!" Jericho snarled, clicking a hand up to his earpiece. "All teams, this is Jericho! We have an active Code Purple in the Amity Colosseum!! I repeat--" As the chaos continued from above, Sahara looked at Desmond with solemn eyes. "Y'know. This kind of shit is real sad." She commented softly. "If I had it my way, it wouldn't have been Yang. And it wouldn't have to come to this. But I don't have a say in the matter." And with that, she struck him in the solar plexus with a fist - not backed up by her Semblance, but still strong enough. Her other arm bent, swinging an elbow to crash into Desmond's face. This blow was backed up by her Momentum and would send him flying away from her. She turned away, briefly coiling her legs before leaping away from the group. In the midst of her leap, she would pass by an explosive that had yet to go off yet. Right as she did so, it beeped... And then, it detonated, threatening the entire group with showering debris. It would also cover Sahara's advance, blocking their path as she would disappear further into the decaying stadium. Rachel's eyes widened with Ruby's, their world around them turning from a momentary relief into panic-ridden alarm. A cascade of remote explosides were set off, beneath the stands, to cause as much mayhem and death as possible with very little waste of resources on the perpetrators' end. Orange and black filled their periphery, loud sounds like gongs and thunderclaps filling their ears and the sounds of screams and shouts became the new cacophony of noise that began to overrun their attention. So much so that they barely noticed a blurring form of Sahara that nearly vaulted over them in her Semblance aided escape. "H-Hey!" Ruby cried out, trying to follow her path with her eyes. Simultaneously, Rachel's eyes turned to see an explosion -aimed to seal off one of the prime exits- sent an array of debris off a stunned Desmond. Before she could even invoke her own powers, Tesla became a current of electricity; spiraling off his skin and fur, he cast a halo of destruction that vaporized the incoming fragments while his teammate regained his bearings. While boulder sized partitions of the ceiling still smashed around them, they were no worse for wear, all things considered. "Desmond! Are you alright?" "Don't worry about me, Rachel!" He shook his head, angrily collecting himself as he brandished his sword and began rushing out with his lightning-coated teammate. "We can't let her get away!" "I know where she went," Ruby proffered, only for Rachel to hone in her eyes at the whizzing blur amidst the crowd. "Ruby. Get back to your team and stay together," The raven-haired girl ordered, bringing an emergency sense of authority she normally didn't bother exuding until now. "We'll take care of our own mess." "But I-" "We'll bring her back," Tesla confirmed with a sparking grimace. "And make her apologize for what she did to your team." Solemnly, she nodded her head and turned on her heel. Her first immediate worry was what the rest of her team was doing, but they were seated next to ARES and JNPR. It was unlikely they were in any immediate threats other than the terrorists, they shouldn't be worried about any external threats; at least, not yet. ---- Pyrrha Nikos felt as if her strength had returned to her during a trying moment. Just when the enemy was about to have their way, they resorted to a much more grisly alternative. Dozens of people were slaughtered and hundreds more were being trampled by the immediate panic that was being broadcast by the enemy. Looking to Glynda Goodwitch, she saw that the plan wasn't in control as they imagined, but it didn't break her stoic grimace as she looked to both of them on the arena. "We're out in the open," She addressed them with her usual authority with a layer of seriousness in it. "Find a higher ground. Don't go back to your usual places of regroup; nowhere familiar is safe in the Vytal Grounds." Pyrrha nodded with affirmation, Penny soon joining her side with an expectant glint of appreciation in her eyes. Despite almost killing her, the girl seemed adamant in being beside her, for whatever reason. Sighing, she let the tension not bog her down and incline her head, both of them soon rushing off the platform while Glynda took off like a whirlwind towards the crowds to help stabilize the panic. ---- "What the Hell?!" Winter cried out, seeing the explosions around them before one beside them shook them off their foundation. Ozpin might have sensed this happening because he leaped with a dexterous grace not seen by the Atlas Special Operative to the other side. Grabbing Jericho by the shoulder, he looked to the two of them and gave a loud commanding tone. "We are under attack! Get to the city, to help cut them off!" "The city?! But why?-" "Because that's where the Grimm are going to congregate," He said bitterly, his eyes shadowing as he grasped Emerald by the scalp of her head and glaring down at her. "And that's what they were trying to do with the dread they've built up into this horror show, isn't it?" "You can't hold me down-" Without mercy, Beacon's Headmaster smashed her head into the nearest balcony rail, rendering her unconscious from the strike. Even as people rushed in and around them, she looked to Jericho first before rushing away, "Tie her up. We don't have time to apprehend her, but we should at least slow her down before she regroups with her friends," He then rushed off into the crowd, seemingly disappearing within their confused masses, like leaves within the wind. ---- Weiss and Blake were thrown back by a nearby explosion, the blast yield of which was thankfully mitigated thanks to the latter's reflexive use of her Semblance to carry the pair away. Similarly, Jaune was hauled backwards with Nora as she grabbed hold of both him and Ren just in time to avoid a near fatalistic blast placed by their seats. With most of Team ARES already departed, they had received only a minor shockwave buffet, but still were given a vista of terror and confusion once the final explosion had rocked the stadium. "Okay, NOW we need to find Ruby!" Weiss said with a definitive shout. "You're right, but where-" Blake looked through the masses, finally catching a glimpse of a red spectral blur moving across the stadium arena. "Oh, I think that's her." "What's she doing?" Jaune inquired worriedly, standing upright from Nora's relinquished grip. "She might be going after Pyrrha," Ren theorized thoughtfully. "She did shout at the top of her lungs just earlier." "Then we need to meet up with them!" Nora urged them, looking to Anthony and Elisha as they seemed to be the remaining two from the pair that went to go find Ruby. "Well? Shouldn't you call back Seth and Rohan, too?!" "Don't have to tell me twice." Anthony breathed, whipping out his Scroll and dialing up Seth. "Hey, Seth! Get your--" "Anthony!" Seth's voice was quick to cut him off, panicked and angry. "Me and Ro got cut off by the stadium collapsing! Holy fuck, what just happened?!" "Harkin happened, that's what." Anthony growled, his eyes sweeping the area for any possible sign of the young criminal boss. However, he couldn't get a grasp on anything due to the chaos happening; something that was probably being used as an advantage. "Can you find a way around?" "We already are." Rohan's voice cut in, making Anthony balk for a minute. It wasn't the sudden way he made himself known, but rather the cold and crisp tone the normally passive boy used. "We can see Ruby moving from our vantage point. Should we continue to follow?" "Yeah." Anthony grunted, narrowing his eyes down at the arena. "She's probably chasing after Pyrrha. We're regrouping with her as fast as we can." "What about Harkin and his group?" Rohan's voice was a bit sharper now. "What about team Carmine?" "They can wait--" "No, they can't!" What little passiveness remained within Rohan's tone dissipated in favor of a furious shout, and even Anthony had to recoil a little at it. "They were responsible for this madness! They have to pay for it!" "I know, Rohan." Anthony stated tersely, sparing a glance over to his companions. Elisha, in turn, was regarding him with concern. "But the people come first." "People have died already! What does a few more matter if the ones responsible are caught?!" And after that, there was a brief and potent silence. "...I..." When he spoke again, Rohan's voice was meeker; even he had been horrified by what had come from his mouth. "I-I'm sorry. You're right. Lives are in need of saving." "Ro..." Seth's voice began, quiet in its bemusement. But Rohan would have none of it. "We'll meet you wherever. Rohan out." The connection was cut, and Anthony took in a deep breath before looking at his companions. "We're running out of time, boys and girls. Let's grab our gear and move." Enter the Tides of Darkness It felt like too much time had passed when they reached one of the landing platforms of the coloseum. But when they finally reached it, their respective arms in hand, they were greeted with the sight of many other students lined up and ready to head into several Air Buses on standby. The majority of them were nervous, scared and even crying - understandably so, even with the presence of the soldiers that guarded their exit. Among them were General Ironwood, Winter and Jericho - the latter of whom were the the first ones the group greeted upon arrival. "Holy shit," Jericho breathed, looking very much relieved when he saw Anthony and his team running. "And here, I thought the lot of you got caught up within those explosions. Either you're lucky, or you're tougher than you look!" "Just be glad you don't have to make more parts." Anthony snarked, slowing to a stop. "What happened?" "Explosives were placed underneath the bleachers." Jericho said grimly, shaking his head. "Not only did it take out a good amount of the kids here, it also served as an invite for some really unwanted guests. I don't think I have to explain what they are, and what defense the city has just didn't keep them from coming in." "The hell are you on about?" Seth demanded indignantly, waving his arms around. "What uninvited guests?" Jericho simply nodded his head towards the edge of the platform. "See for yourself." After exchanging hesitant glances with one another - save for Anthony, who already knew what he was going to see - ARES quickly jogged up to the edge and looked. Several Bullheads, much to their surprise, were flying towards the city. As Elisha squinted his eyes, he could pick out the forms of Grimm within the cargo holds as well as White Fang pilots driving the merchandise. He looked at Anthony with alarm, pointing at one of the distant ships. "Anthony, those are White Fang! And they're carrying Grimm into the city!" "Is this some sort of sick joke?!" Seth demanded, placing a hand up to his temple. "This can't be for the sake of equality! This is..." He extended a hand towards it, noting the murder of Nevermores not too far behind. "This is just..." "Yeah..." Anthony growled, his fists balling up. The sight of it was making his blood boil. "And just when I thought the White Fang couldn't get anymore messed up." "This is absolutely barbaric." Elisha agreed, his voice having grown cold. "There is no justifiable reason for any of this. None whatsoever." "As much as it pains me to say it," Pyrrha began to say, she bit her lip and looked to Jaune before turning to stare seriously at Anthony. "We have to go back to Beacon." "Back?" Jaune asked with an odd turn towards Ren and Nora, exchanging bewildered glances before looking back at their spiritual glue. "What do you mean, go back?" "I can't share the details," She began to say, shaking her head sadly, taking the time to hurriedly explain and gesture pass the madness going on just below their feet. "But the only chance we have of turning the tide lies back at the Academy. Try as we might, we are unequipped to handle things of this magnitude." "Well, that's obvious," Ren intoned with a wave of his arms. "But we can't just do nothing." "Is there a giant hammer inside of Beacon's basement?" Nora asked, a glint of hope entered her eyes; one that was diminished when Pyrrha looked away with trepidation. "Pyrrha?" "I have to do this," She declared, more to herself than to the rest of them. Eyes, brimming with tears looked at the collection of fellow classmates that surrounded her for the past two semesters. "There's no one else." "I got your back," Jaune assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder, smiling past the doubt and uncertainty that belied within his hurt self; from the time he was violently pushed aside when she was still full of confusion and fear. "No matter what you do, I'll always keep close." "O-Oh Jaune!" The red-haired maiden pulled him into a tight embrace, a tenderness that contrasted beautifully with the battle raging on below. "Well," Ruby managed to speak above the rest, pointing at the mighty vessels that were being downed by another one. "I don't know about you guys, but I think that's going to keep us from just flying straight there." "Damn," Blake hissed, her eyes glaring at the skyline's turmoil as they were losing their biggest advantage; especially with the slew of Nevermores that flapped to and fro around them. "We've got to stop that!" "How?" Weiss queried rightfully, gesturing to the lot of them. "Unless we have a jetpack under our skirts or pants, we have no way to get up there. That's even positively thinking if we don't get shot down."